A Tale of Two Hotels

As I mentioned the last time I had a chance to use a computer, we stayed at a the exceptional Hotel Tallaird in Goumois, Fr. We had luxurious rooms and wonderful meals. It was so comfortable and also raining so we spent an extra day, using the computer and dozing in the library/game/billiard room watching it rain. Rhonda says that one of the reasons for walking this trip is that it would be too decadent to do it otherwise and this place was exhibit A for that. I had a vegitarian dinner and it included truffles. Rhonda had chocolate desert. That would be chocolate mouse, chocolate cake, chocolate glace and chocolate sculpture. She started to eat it and found that she had a chocolate spoon as well. So, it was very nice, but different from anything else in the Jura Mountains where we have stayed in Gites, Aurberges, and a trailer in a camp ground. Augerges are country restaurants that sometimes have rooms upstairs and Gites can vary from communal eating and dormitories to private rooms. We found in the Jura Gites are mostly of the communal variety.

We left Goumois and spent two days hiking the Doubs River Canyon. The Jura are basically a wind flat plateau with rivers and creeks cutting valleys through it. The Doubs is the biggest river in the area and has a meandering path that cuts back and forth across the plateau. The canyon is exceptional and reminded us of the South Yuba canyon from Washington to the Dry Diggings. The hike is about 20 km each day and has only one spot to stay, right in the middle. The river has dams and power plants like the Feather and there is a road along some of it on the Swiss side (the river forms the border between France and Switzerland in this area).

The river above Goumois is flat and gradually becomes a rushing stream. We didn't see any other hikers for the two days we were in the canyon, except at the falls on one end which is a big tourist area and at the Hotel Relles where we stayed. We have been surprised at how solitary this trip has been. We hike in silence and bird song and talk to each other about life and the beauty around us and what is important and our aches and pains, and we love it. We did see a few fishermen and kayakers on the river. We ate lunch on the steps of a small chapel Bief d Etoz at the base of a limestone cliff just above the river. The door was open so we rang the bells at noon and asked for blessings for friends and family.

The trail winds along the river and sometimes climbs the verticle limestone crags where the cliffs overhang the trail and the river is a sheer drop of 200 feet below. Flat above dams and swift and roaring the rest of the way, the river makes a fine companion. It is dark and damp in the gorge and the trees and rocks in some places are completely covered with moss. It is a watery and green world. The approach to the la Rasse Hotel is along a reservoir with boats tied to the banks and scattered houses set in pastures full of cows with their bells singing on the Swiss side of the river.

We had a beer in the yard in front of Hotel la Rasse and watched the hikers come in, three families hiking together totaling 11 people and a couple and two guys. It was great talking to them and comparing notes, something we haven't done much of. The room was small, the bathrooms and showers down the hall and the walls thin. Dinner was a simple menu with everyone eating the same. We had the kids in the families next to us chattering and playing, but everyone was so tired from hiking that the place was silent by 10. The next morning, madam was late with breakfast so she hurriedly got our bread, jam, butter and coffee or tea or chocolate on the tables. It was totally different from Goumois, but for us it would be hard to choose which one was best. Well, maybe Rhonda has a preference, but I'm writing this...

The Jura Mountains are a winter skiing area. Lots of cross country skiing, in fact the Grand Tour of the Jura cross country trail is the same as the GR5 much of the way through the mountians. There are also down hill areas, that are used by mountain bikers in the summer. In fact we have seen more bikers on the GR5 than hikers outside the major tourist areas. We have seen winter areas for luge and ski jumping.

Rhonda spends a lot of time on the trail day dreaming about haircuts and pedicures. She wears the same things each day and I think looks better with every step. I talked her out of getting a haircut today, pointing out that she will have more options in Nice.

We are in Noyon on Lake Geneva tonight and it is raining. We walked along the lake today and had a picnic of morbier cheese, (have I mentioned how good the cheese is?) and bread and chocolate. We leave tomorrow for the Alps hoping to meet Ben and Melanie in a week or so.